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[Gorgon]

I'm actually surprised. The book is actualy quite satisfying (as long as you don't have high expectations) for what is supposed to be a book for an 11 years old. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings actually felt far more sophomoric than this. Already ordered the next one. Lets see if I can keep up the interest to read all of them.

 

[ACESandEIGHTS]

recently finished:
William Gibson - Neuromancer

Not a huge SF guy anymore (or ever), but you do owe it to yourself to read Count Zero now. And then, if you liked the first two, Mona Lisa Overdrive is worth your time too.

 

[Drewsky]

Just started it. Heard it was exactly like No Country For Old Men, so I couldn't pass it up.

 

[ACESandEIGHTS]

Oh, and I'm reading Bruce Catton's The Civil War and The Blue and the Gray (don't know the autor). And the some occasional Aubrey/Maturin novels.

Because I am a nerd.

 

[Gorgon]

Excellent choice, my friend.

I just finished Soulforge and Brothers in Arms so I'm gonna re read the Dragonlance Chronicles:

I read this ages ago and I felt it was so retarded and badly written that I still have pangs of guilt for the few hours I've wasted in it. Can't understand how such an atrocity ever got to be a best seller.
How are you finding it?

Wow, it's been years since I read any Dragonlance. I used to collect the series between the ages of 12-14. I didn't read them anymore after that, until I was 18 and feeling nostalgic. I didn't read the original trilogy which I hear isn't so bad, just one of the other trilogies... I think having to do with elves, I can't remember specifically which one. It was so badly written, my memories were forever tarnished. Not only was the writing bad, but the plotting was terrible. Plot points that they'd bring up which would suddenly disappear into the ether. The experience has made me very wary about which books I decide to re-read.

Yes, that pretty much sums it up imho.

I finished The Big Sleep a few days ago. Very good stuff, but I was ready to get back into some sci-fi:

I bought this years ago and got maybe 80 pages in, but never ended up getting too far into it. I honestly can't remember why I got bored of it, seems crazy now. After dusting it off yesterday and starting over from the beginning I'm already 230 pages in. I love the Canterbury Tales style with all of the individual stories and the mystery of the Shrike and the Time Tombs is fascinating to me. I also like the backdrop that the Hegemony provides. I already have The Fall of Hyperion on my Kindle since I know I'll be tearing through this fairly quickly.

Absolutely fascinating books. Make sure you read The Fall of Hyperion too. You may want to skip the Endymion books, though. They felt like Symmons decided to write juvenile fiction instead for those. Couldn't even believe they were from the same author. They're still enjoyable, but nowhere near the quality of the first two.

 

[IGotBillySoSpooked]

I bought it last year around this time, but never got around to reading it. After he died a couple of months back, I've been meaning to get to it. I'm about half way right now, so I'll probably have it done by the end of the weekend. It is a smooth, fast read. Winters writes just like he speaks - insightful and precise.

I've temporarily taken a break from The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich since it is a behemoth. I'll probably move that to the back burner permanently and work in other books around it...it is a tough one to get through.

 

[Fjordson]

Absolutely fascinating books. Make sure you read The Fall of Hyperion too. You may want to skip the Endymion books, though. They felt like Symmons decided to write juvenile fiction instead for those. Couldn't even believe they were from the same author. They're still enjoyable, but nowhere near the quality of the first two.

I jumped right into Fall of Hyperion, and it's so good already. That's a shame about the Endymion entries. I'll probably check them out eventually, but not immediately after Fall. These first two, though, wow. Really, really good.

 

[Gorgon]

I jumped right into Fall of Hyperion, and it's so good already. That's a shame about the Endymion entries. I'll probably check them out eventually, but not immediately after Fall. These first two, though, wow. Really, really good.

I believe that, after the first two, you will want to read the Endymion books anyway. The first two are just so good! The Endymion books read fast, they're full of action, etc, but the writing isn't anywhere near as good. Maybe you should get them from library instead of buying them.

 

[Gorgon]

I have two questions:

How good is this series?:

I'm very intriged by the nautical setting and the concept of the living ships, but I'm afraid of this beying too cheesy. Is this well writen and "adult" fantasy? What can you guys/gals tell me about this?


Also, I'm looking for a fantasy series that delves into the intincracies of Magic, with a lot of attention to Magical farternities/houses/whatever, with diferent traditions and/or types of magic, with lots of lore in the form of fictional books, named spells, etc. Basically, something along the lines of the richness found in this pen&paper RPG (for those who know it):

Is there anything like what I'm searching for?

Thanks in advance!

 

[way more]

I really enjoyed that SNL book. I had no idea about the politics backstage nor the amount of work that went into each show.

I can't put this book down. I thought I knew how things went but this book keep on revealing.


The most awesome part was a 23 year old Al Franken telling Kissenger to shove it and then confronting Spiro Agnew.

 

[mike23]

Also, I'm looking for a fantasy series that delves into the intincracies of Magic, with a lot of attention to Magical farternities/houses/whatever, with diferent traditions and/or types of magic, with lots of lore in the form of fictional books, named spells, etc. Basically, something along the lines of the richness found in this pen&paper RPG (for those who know it):

[\IMG]http://i1007.photobucket.com/albums/af200/Gorgonnae/ArsMagica.jpg[/IMG]

Is there anything like what I'm searching for?

Thanks in advance!

I'm also interested in this type of book. Hopefully there's a good long series out there.

 

[HiroProtagonist]

I have two questions:

How good is this series?:

I'm very intriged by the nautical setting and the concept of the living ships, but I'm afraid of this beying too cheesy. Is this well writen and "adult" fantasy? What can you guys/gals tell me about this?


Also, I'm looking for a fantasy series that delves into the intincracies of Magic, with a lot of attention to Magical farternities/houses/whatever, with diferent traditions and/or types of magic, with lots of lore in the form of fictional books, named spells, etc. Basically, something along the lines of the richness found in this pen&paper RPG (for those who know it):


Is there anything like what I'm searching for?

Thanks in advance!

Those are great new covers for the Hobb series. Have you read the Farseer Trilogy (Assassin's Apprentice, Royal Assassin and Assassin's Quest) yet? She has a trilogy of related trilogies, and I believe the reading order is: Farseer Trilogy, The Liveship Traders Trilogy, and the Tawny Man Trilogy. I purchased them all at one time, read the Farseer trilogy, and misplaced all three of the Liveship books (how I lost 3 books is baffling), but managed to hold on to the Tawny Man series. I think the consensus is that The Liveship Traders is the best of the lot.

I don't have any suggestions about magic-centric books, but I did come across this thread on amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/tag/fantasy/f...Forum=FxRHP2KEWXI0H1&cdThread=Tx12K1B1I9YZRAF

 

[Mr_Appleby]

just read this. very interesting.

 

[Apple Sauce]

I have two questions:

How good is this series?:

I'm very intriged by the nautical setting and the concept of the living ships, but I'm afraid of this beying too cheesy. Is this well writen and "adult" fantasy? What can you guys/gals tell me about this?


Also, I'm looking for a fantasy series that delves into the intincracies of Magic, with a lot of attention to Magical farternities/houses/whatever, with diferent traditions and/or types of magic, with lots of lore in the form of fictional books, named spells, etc. Basically, something along the lines of the richness found in this pen&paper RPG (for those who know it):



Is there anything like what I'm searching for?

Thanks in advance!

They're brilliant, Hobb is one of my Favourite Fantasy authors. Don't start with that trilogy, though. It ties in with two other trilogies and the whole sequence is much better if you read them in the intended order. Start with this one:

It's a semi-realistic fantasy world, certain types of 'magic' are present and later on there are dragons etc.
It's not really what you're looking for in terms of an in-depth system of magic with lots of arcane lore and incantations, yet I still heartily recommended them.

 

[aidan]

I have two questions:

How good is this series?:

I'm very intriged by the nautical setting and the concept of the living ships, but I'm afraid of this beying too cheesy. Is this well writen and "adult" fantasy? What can you guys/gals tell me about this?

Thanks in advance!

Big thumbs up from me.

 

[Peasant Princess-King]

Just finished Stardust by Neil Gaiman

 

[Salazar]

Jonathan Israel's Enlightenment Contested. I had to double-check that it wasn't just a reissue under a different title of Radical Enlightenment. Both quite whopping books about more or less the same folks and ideas, with a five year interval.

Pretty damned good.

 

[Lafiel]

Finished.

Pretty solid start, it felt a tad disjointed at the start, but it managed to come together really well in the last 100 pages. Really eager to see what happens next. Oh and glokta is bad-ass!

Now Reading

Had to put this on hold for a bit since the above book was due back to the library. Around 195 pages into it, and bujold trademark characterization and writing is still as good as ever. I'm also particularly impressed by the setting and world-building thus far.

 

[mike23]

Loved this book. Loved the series. Loved everything.

I'm glad to see that he's coming out with another (standalone) book in the series set in the future. I wish that authors wouldn't write trilogies though, it's always so sad to see a great world left behind after only three books.

 

[meyers5j]

Not a huge SF guy anymore (or ever), but you do owe it to yourself to read Count Zero now. And then, if you liked the first two, Mona Lisa Overdrive is worth your time too.

Thanks for the suggestion, will do. If you don't mind my asking, is there a particular reason that you're not a fan of SF? It's becoming my favorite genre, lately.

 

[storl026]

Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

Vonnegut is by far my favorite author, and I still have to get through about 4 more of his books. Just a completely different way of looking at the world and life for what it is: a cacophony of chaos, madness and simple beauty.

 

[justin.au]

Just started so I can't really offer too much about it other than it's interesting and informative. (Keep in mind that I'm a PolSci Major so my idea of "interesting and informative" may be very different to your's).

One of my favourite characters in Australian politics, and reading this collection of anecdotes (most of them personal) just makes me a bit sad that he won't be around too much longer.

Eh, I'm not sure I understand the love for Arthur Miller to be honest. Perhaps I need to see it performed, but it really didn't seem well written. I'm about to start The Crucible, so perhaps his writing will click with me.

 

[Fjordson]

They're brilliant, Hobb is one of my Favourite Fantasy authors. Don't start with that trilogy, though. It ties in with two other trilogies and the whole sequence is much better if you read them in the intended order. Start with this one:

It's a semi-realistic fantasy world, certain types of 'magic' are present and later on there are dragons etc.
It's not really what you're looking for in terms of an in-depth system of magic with lots of arcane lore and incantations, yet I still heartily recommended them.

+1

Really, really love the Farseer trilogy. Still have to read the last book in that.

 

[Gorgon]

Those are great new covers for the Hobb series. Have you read the Farseer Trilogy (Assassin's Apprentice, Royal Assassin and Assassin's Quest) yet? She has a trilogy of related trilogies, and I believe the reading order is: Farseer Trilogy, The Liveship Traders Trilogy, and the Tawny Man Trilogy. I purchased them all at one time, read the Farseer trilogy, and misplaced all three of the Liveship books (how I lost 3 books is baffling), but managed to hold on to the Tawny Man series. I think the consensus is that The Liveship Traders is the best of the lot.

I don't have any suggestions about magic-centric books, but I did come across this thread on amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/tag/fantasy/f...Forum=FxRHP2KEWXI0H1&cdThread=Tx12K1B1I9YZRAF

No, I haven't read any of those. I'm not that big into fantasy and I'm really picky about what I read and like. I've read mostly sci-fi.

Thanks for the link!

They're brilliant, Hobb is one of my Favourite Fantasy authors. Don't start with that trilogy, though. It ties in with two other trilogies and the whole sequence is much better if you read them in the intended order. Start with this one:

It's a semi-realistic fantasy world, certain types of 'magic' are present and later on there are dragons etc.
It's not really what you're looking for in terms of an in-depth system of magic with lots of arcane lore and incantations, yet I still heartily recommended them.

Hum, but I'm really not inclined to read the Farseer trilogy at all. What attracted me to the Live Ships was the nautical setting and, well, the live ships.

But thanks for the imput!

 

[Gorgon]

I'm also interested in this type of book. Hopefully there's a good long series out there.

looks like I found something that could interest us:

The author is Lyndon Hardy and the trilogy is composed by Master of the Five Magics, Secret of Sixt Magic and Riddle of the Seven Realms.

Check out Wikipedia, there's a run down of the magic system and it looks as close as I've ever seen to what I'm looking for. I don't know about the setting though. I'll have to do a search on the internets for opinions.

 

[JAGII]

Just finished:

Just started:

just read this. very interesting.

Your first time reading it? What did you think? It has such a charged history and surprising "message" (you can be free in heaven or in Liberia, but not here), that people aren't sure what to do with it at first.

 

[aLaxLuthor]

So glad I can finally post in this.

Just starting:

Also:

and DailyLit'ing:

 

[Wellington]

I finished Eleven Minutes the other night and almost immediately started The Devil and Miss Prym. Sticking with Paolo Coelho for the moment, they're quick reads and can be found cheaply so it's cool.

Eleven Minutes did not have me interested at all until towards the end. He was somewhat heavy handed but I did enjoy it overall I guess. Miss Prym had me from the word go, excellent read so far.

 

[ItAintEasyBeinCheesy]

I have two questions:

How good is this series?:

I'm very intriged by the nautical setting and the concept of the living ships, but I'm afraid of this beying too cheesy. Is this well writen and "adult" fantasy? What can you guys/gals tell me about this?

One of the best series you will read EVER!. Robin Hobb in her prime, fuck those books are amazing. Check out Assassins Quest as well, fuck she is an incredible author.

No, I haven't read any of those. I'm not that big into fantasy and I'm really picky about what I read and like. I've read mostly sci-fi.

Thanks for the link!



Hum, but I'm really not inclined to read the Farseer trilogy at all. What attracted me to the Live Ships was the nautical setting and, well, the live ships.

But thanks for the imput!

Read them and then the Tawny Man series. Manly tears where shed, if i think hard enough about it i can still make my eyes water. Goddamn incredible.

Liveship Trilogy is set between Assassins Quest and Tawny Man, it can be read as a stand alone but it so much better if read as part of what is a 9 books series. Trust me if you read them all you wont be disappointed.

 

[JonCha]

Reading this. Excellent book that follows the lives of two students of the periods of 20 years from 15th July 1988 (reoccurring at that date every year). Close to 2/3 of the way through; excellently written, and doesn't lag / drag at any point. Well worth it.

 

[Zalasta]

Started Memories of Ice yesterday. About 10% through and I'm already liking it better than Deadhouse Gates, that book really did nothing for me.

 

[Gorgon]

I finished Eleven Minutes the other night and almost immediately started The Devil and Miss Prym. Sticking with Paolo Coelho for the moment, they're quick reads and can be found cheaply so it's cool.

It's Paulo, not Paolo. He ain't Spanish or Latin American spanish-speaker.

Just sayn'.

One of the best series you will read EVER!. Robin Hobb in her prime, fuck those books are amazing. Check out Assassins Quest as well, fuck she is an incredible author.

Read them and then the Tawny Man series. Manly tears where shed, if i think hard enough about it i can still make my eyes water. Goddamn incredible.

Liveship Trilogy is set between Assassins Quest and Tawny Man, it can be read as a stand alone but it so much better if read as part of what is a 9 books series. Trust me if you read them all you wont be disappointed.

Thanks for the imput. I may jump in to the Live Ships sequence first. I'll probably buy the first book and see if I like it.

 

[Gorgon]

Found another author (thanks to the link someone above provided me) that writes this series in which magic is well developed and has a very academic feel to it. The author is Katherine Kurtz and the books are the Deryni series.

 

[ItAintEasyBeinCheesy]

It's Paulo, not Paolo. He ain't Spanish or Latin American spanish-speaker.

Just sayn'.




Thanks for the imput. I may jump in to the Live Ships sequence first. I'll probably buy the first book and see if I like it.

Prepare for a soul crush. If you do go through with it you will need someone to tell you bout one of the main characters from the Liveships. One of them is also the main in the Assassins Questy, Tawny Man series.... with a different name.

Also her nautical knowledge is pretty sweet as well.

 

[besada]

looks like I found something that could interest us:

The author is Lyndon Hardy and the trilogy is composed by Master of the Five Magics, Secret of Sixt Magic and Riddle of the Seven Realms.

I still have a soft place in my heart for Hardy's books. I read them first when I was about thirteen or fourteen. Such detailed and well thought out magical systems. I seem to remember they get crappier as they go, though.

You should check out Roger Zelazny's Madwand, too. It's about a highly regulated magical society, but the main character is a natural and wild talent.

 

[Gorgon]

I still have a soft place in my heart for Hardy's books. I read them first when I was about thirteen or fourteen. Such detailed and well thought out magical systems. I seem to remember they get crappier as they go, though.

You should check out Roger Zelazny's Madwand, too. It's about a highly regulated magical society, but the main character is a natural and wild talent.

Just checked out Changeling and Madwand but the world doesn't catch my interest. Maybe I'll eventually check them.

but please, tell me more about hardy's books, the setting, writing quality, etc, if you don't mind.

 

[Sub_Level]

Just came in the mail yesterday. Get out of here, Stalker. Unlike the Tarkovsky film and the game trilogy there's more than one Zone. Really interesting stuff.

 

[Crazylegs]

Just finished David Moody's "Hater". It takes the Zombie storymeme and turns it on its head. Imagine a world where anyone, anytime - your friend, a stranger, your spouse, your child - decides that everyone is out to kill them. Now imagine those people deciding it's "kill or be killed". How do you deal with that as a person, as a community?

Just started this one (yes, another Zombie book). This one is done as a series of blogposts that chronicle Allison Hewitt's experiences in surviving the typical Zombie Apocalypse while trapped in a book store. Despite a number of flaws, I'm quite enjoying this one (so far).

 

[besada]

but please, tell me more about hardy's books, the setting, writing quality, etc, if you don't mind.

It's been more than twenty years since I read them, but if memory serves the prose quality was a little above par for fantasy, and there was less focus on action and more on the intricacies of the various magical systems. It's sort of a standard hero quest, where the protagonist moves from situation to situation, improving his understanding of the different schools of magic, in an attempt to both win the heart of a lady and become the Archmage.

The later books deal with metamagic, and go into even more detail about the magical systems.

 

[Jay Sosa]

About to start that book:

It's the Ramayana illustrated by some Pixar artist, should be good.

 

[Gorgon]

It's been more than twenty years since I read them, but if memory serves the prose quality was a little above par for fantasy, and there was less focus on action and more on the intricacies of the various magical systems. It's sort of a standard hero quest, where the protagonist moves from situation to situation, improving his understanding of the different schools of magic, in an attempt to both win the heart of a lady and become the Archmage.

The later books deal with metamagic, and go into even more detail about the magical systems.

Thanks. I notice that the author is a physicist and from reviews and opinions on the Internet, the magic system looks like what I'm searching for. It also feels very academic in terms of how magic works and is researched (and the wizards that do so). Ricght up my alley. I hope the setting doesn't suck.

 

[ACESandEIGHTS]

Thanks for the suggestion, will do. If you don't mind my asking, is there a particular reason that you're not a fan of SF? It's becoming my favorite genre, lately.

Just one of them things. Wm Gibson had this future-cool, cyberpunk way about creating worlds, and admittedly much of it was goofy (space Rastas, etc.)

but so much of it was badass, like the dirty streets of Chiba and The Sprawl, street samurai, the invention cyberspace, the punk ethos of apathy, anarchy, drugs, and smashing stuff, Turing Police, Panther Moderns, ninjas, etc. etc.

After Gibson ruined me for most other SF, it was only similar sci-fi (e.g. Snow Crash, The Diamond Age) with near-future plausibility and current generation reference points that interested me. So I wouldn't say I avoid sci-fi on sight, but rather its fringes slightly overlap what I normally read, and I'm OK with the occasional future fantasy.

 

[nakedsushi]

Reading this. Excellent book that follows the lives of two students of the periods of 20 years from 15th July 1988 (reoccurring at that date every year). Close to 2/3 of the way through; excellently written, and doesn't lag / drag at any point. Well worth it.

I recently read this and liked it a lot too. I thought the characters would become annoying, but they really changed and matured as the book went along.

Finished our bookclub book:


Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein
Hated it in the end. I give it 1 star.

Full review is in the bookclub thread: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=26441220#post26441220

Next up:


The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

 

[Wellington]

It's Paulo, not Paolo. He ain't Spanish or Latin American spanish-speaker.

Just sayn'.

OK cool guy. Sorry for the typo, those never happen on internet forums.

 

[ymmv]

Finished F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" yesterday. I liked it well enough, but it didn't strike me as a literary masterpiece for the ages.

I'm going to be reading Iain Pears' "Stone's Fall" now. Looking forward to this. His novel "An Instance of the Fingerpost" was very, very good.

 

[Night_Trekker]

I finally finished Lucifer's Hammer today. I really enjoyed it, but I'm not sure I could recommend it to anyone else.

The only other book I've completed by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle is The Mote in God's Eye, which is fantastic. I'm willing to forgive the under-development of characters in science fiction since that's unfortunately par for the genre, but I had so many issues with Lucifer's Hammer. Something is wrong when you're 3/4ths of the way through a novel and you don't know what many of the characters actually look like, especially when there are so many of them and you're struggling to tell them all apart. I would have been lost without the dramatis personæ.

I suppose I should expect more of this sort of thing from Niven and Pournelle if I continue reading them. Recommended only for fans of their other work or of post-apocalyptic fiction in general.

I guess I'm going to keep chipping away at The Gripping Hand now (pretty good so far), but I might also start Lord of Light, which I know nothing at all about but own a copy of for some unknown reason.

 

[Adam Scott Aukerman]

Recently finished From Hell. Never have I been so relieved to finish a book! There's an enjoyable read in there, but unfortunately it's just far too drawn out.

Have moved on from that to Scott Pilgrim (of which I'm about one and a half volumes into). Really interesting to see how much the film managed to capture, but I'm already dreading the rest of the fights - I found the film frustratingly repetitive.

From there, I'll likely move on to A Brief History of Time.

 

[mike23]

Just hit chapter 15 in

This author must have a rape fetish or something. Every other page it seems some man or woman is being raped. I'm finding it difficult to read and I've started to skim over the parts that are especially rape-y. I'm hoping it gets toned down later in the book, it'd certainly make the book more enjoyable for me if it did.

 

[Rei_Toei]

Four stories in. GAF recommended it. So far, interesting but I haven't read a story yet that blew me away. The opening story by King was entertaining, though.

 

[Speschal K]

From Tor.com, the most generic fantasy titles possible (using stats from ~the last decade):

The Shadow War of the Night Dragon, Book One: The Dead City
The Shadow War of the Night Dragon, Book Two: Dark Blood Magic
The Shadow War of the Night Dragon, Book Three: Dream World of the Fire Wolf

Of course it's a trilogy!

Here's the whole generic-title word list if you want to make your own:

http://i.imgur.com/lrQ7L.png[IMG][/QUOTE]

Nice! Coincidentally, yesterday I was browsing a writing forum when I followed a [URL="http://whatever.scalzi.com/2010/09/16/writing-find-the-time-or-dont/"]link[/URL] to John Scalzi's blog, Whatever, which I thoroughly enjoyed grokking for the better half of an hour. It makes sense that he is a big Heinlein fan, which led me to download/buy his novel, Old Man's War. I've seen it recommended on GAF before and I recall trying to get into it a couple years ago to no avail. Last night, I was highly entertained and managed to get through a fourth of the book rather quickly.

[IMG]http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51PGEMXGN8L._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg


It may be enough to interrupt my reading of a book recommended to me by a co-worker, the Walking Drum by Louis L'Amour: